Qi Pao Exhibition: A Blend of Fashion and History

Guest blogger Kylene Wu returns to tell us about the fabulous Qi Pao exhibition currently showing at the Hong Kong museum of history… A blend of fashion and history, it’s the perfect combination, even if you’re not usually a dedicated museum goer!

I’ve seen tourists wearing it and spotted them in history textbooks but I’ve never owned or worn a qipao (also known as cheongsam in Cantonese) myself! Originally worn by women during the Qing dynasty, they’ve evolved over the decades and are still present today in its modernised form.

It was really fun looking at how the qipao changed over the years and seeing them featured in old magazines and movies. I also caught snippets of conversations around me from both young and old. It was quite amusing to hear elderly visitors indignantly saying that the modern versions of qipaos could hardly be considered a qipao while the younger visitors oohed and aahed over them. As for me, I love them both!

Qi Paos featuring more patterns and colour from the ’50s and ’60s.

Fun fact: There has been a Qi Pao segment in the Miss Hong Kong pageant since it started in 1973!

There are also more modern interpretations of the Qi Pao on display, from the red gown (above left) that the 2008 Olympic hostesses wore, to deconstructed Qi Paos.

The exhibition is a fantastic combination of history and fashion and if you’re interested in either, it’s worth a visit! To see more photographs and for more interesting facts or tour details, click here.

Hester Aba

Hester is originally from the incredibly glamorous city of Bristol, in England. Determined to escape her West-Country roots (though a love of good scrumpy should never be lost) she packed off for uni at Oxford to waste several years on a degree in Philosophy and never looked back… Following a stint in Switzerland eating too much fondue and meeting her future husband, they jumped at the chance to follow their dream of heading to Asia, and landed in Hong Kong in 2008. Along with partners-in-crime and fellow Tai-Tais, Maura Thompson and Natalie Firestone, she founded Sassy in 2009 and then Sassy Mama in 2011 after the birth of her daughter Elodie. Number 2 daughter Margot arrived in August 2012 and then two months later it was off to her new home in Singapore with tinies in tow. Hester is discovering the Lion City one shophouse at a time with a love for seeking out Singapore’s hidden secrets!